Nov200812

Long ago I made this tee shirt and it was celebrated. Once again it is available to commemorate the best and most authentic of basketball experiences. The Milkcrate Basketball Association is the truth. –>get one at the Milkcrate Digest Zazzle page

Oct200809

Friend from the southland sent me this wonderful milkcrate product from the etsy.com. I reached out to Ms. QuietDoing and she agreed to answer my random interview questions. (MD=Milkcrate Digest, QD=QuietDoing) –>products via esty.com, QuietDoing Shop

MD: Tell me about the milkcrate patterns and images…where did the idea come from, why crates?

QD: Many of my design influences are music inspired. I dip and dabble with records and DJing and to quote Kid Koala, “Some of my best friends are DJ’s”! ;D The turntable/record designs come straight from that part of my life and the milkcrates, to me, go hand in hand with the record culture. I’ve realized two of my favorite things involve playing with needles: records and sewing = destiny!

MD: How do milkcrates enhance or affect your daily life? do you have some around the house? how many?

QD: My last apartment shared a back lot with a grocery store where we acquired dozens of crates for records and patio furniture. I did a lot of planting and outdoor landscaping with them. Ah… nostalgia.

Thinking about them now, creates a sort of vibe or energy that I can always connect with. They’re just these plastic things that stack – the same, large, LEGO piece that I felt I could build with or use for anything my creative mind and physical energy would allow. Ask my roommates, I was perpetually re-arranging those crates!

I’ve recently moved, though, and have acquired more legit wooden furniture and record housing, so my crate collection has dwindled to only a few to store art supplies, fabric, music equipment and tools; I don’t think they will ever fully escape me. If I could integrate milkcrates into my interior design, I’d do so in a heartbeat.
I do have a not-so-traditional, but handy-dandy and collapsible plastic crate that I keep in the trunk of my car. It’s nifty.

MD: What is your earliest milkcrate memory?

QD: My earliest milkcrate memories involve my dad getting black ones from the outside lot of the laundromat my parents used to own. They were put out by the bakery next door and he’d a use for them for everything DIY related. I’d use them as chairs, step stools, or stilts; the way bored single-digit-age children do while waiting around for the adults to finish their duties of responsibility.

Nov200616

I got an email this week from me Tim Quirey, the author of “Cr(e)ate” which is a book of photography of milkcrates all over the world. His work took him to Morocco, New Zealand, London, Paris, Barcelona, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, and Canberra. I’m so siked this has been done, and I hope to feature Tim in the future. Support the crate love everywhere!